The 1st IRU/EU Presidency Road Transport Conference  & Ministerial Meeting will be held on 1 December 2010 in Brussels to focus on Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Road Transport for the Future.

Brussels - The 1st IRU/EU Presidency Road Transport Conference and Ministerial Meeting, hosted by the State Secretary for Mobility of the Kingdom of Belgium representing the EU Presidency, Etienne Schouppe, will be held in Brussels, Belgium on 1 December 2010 on the theme “Efficient, Safe and Sustainable Road Transport for the Future”.

A Ministerial Meeting, where transport Ministers will discuss the future of road transport in the EU, will take place in the framework of this Conference.

IRU General Delegate to the EU, Michael Nielsen, said, “The EU today is at crossroads and the transport policy decisions it takes now will shape the future mobility capacities and patterns of its citizens, as well as the economic development and competitiveness of its internal market and its place and role alongside other regions of the world in the 21st Century. As commercial road transport is a key player in the sustainable mobility of people and goods, there is a need for pooling knowledge, ideas and best practices that will help make future road transport ever more efficient, safe and sustainable.”

The Conference will bring together some 400 political, transport and trade leaders from all 27 EU Member States to discuss a common approach as to how public and private stakeholders at EU and national level can design better road transport priorities and policies in Europe.

Speaker panels will feature IRU President, Janusz Lacny, and high-level representatives from the EU institutions, including EC Vice-President and Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas, the Chairman of the European Parliament’s Committee on Transport and Tourism, Brian Simpson, as well as DG MOVE Director of Inland Transport Enrico Grillo Pasquarelli, the European Environment Agency (EEA), TISPOL European Traffic Police Network, the European Road Federation (ERF) and the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).

Topics covered in interactive sessions will include ways to meet road transport’s future  efficiency, safety and environmental challenges, public-private partnerships supporting these objectives, professional training as the key to improving road transport efficiency and safety as well as innovation and latest technologies. On this occasion, the IRU will also hand over its traditional Grand Prix d’Honneur award as well as an IRU Order of Merit, and publicly recommit to the EU Road Safety Charter.

See the Conference programme and register now to ensure your place at this much anticipated event!

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Press contact: Juliette Ebélé, +41 22 918 27 07, press@iru.org